Eligibility

For young people leaving formal care

From 1 January 2014, young people leaving formal care may be eligible to receive the $1,500 Transition to Independent Living Allowance (TILA) to help them move to independent living. The allowance can be used for a range of support services as well as training and education materials.

To receive the allowance the young person must:

be an Australian citizen or permanent Australian resident who resides in Australia at the time of submitting the application

be aged 15 to 25 (inclusive) at the time of submitting the application

have been, or are currently in, formal care on a court order

either be approaching an exit from formal care (within twelve weeks of applying), experiencing an exit from formal care, or have exited from formal care

have left the care of the state or territory statutory department after the age of 15 years and was last in the department’s care for a continuous period of at least 6 months

have not received the full amount of TILA assistance previously; a young person can only receive up to a total of $1,500

have a leaving care plan agreed with their case worker

have agreed with their case worker that the proposed use and timing of TILA is appropriate.

They can access the allowance in up to six instalments as agreed with their case worker.

The previous 24 month time limit to apply for funding assistance will no longer apply.